MONTESANO, WASH.-Peter J. Koppinger has sold the New Montesano Theatre to Mr. and Mrs. G.E. Cressler of Seaside, Ore. As part of the deal, the Cresslers have sold the Beacon hotel in Seaside to the Koppingers, who came to Montesano in February 1948, when they bought the Montesano from Irvin Westenkow.

Zoom in all the way on the photo KenLayton linked to, and it looks like there might be a ghost sign on the theater’s side wall. On the other hand, it might just be years of accumulated dirt. I can’t make out any actual letters, but either way, the building was already pretty old in 1929. From the architectural style of the facade, I’d guess that it was built no later than the early 1920s, and more likely sometime in the 1910s, and perhaps even earlier.

If the building dates from as early as 1908, it might be the 400-seat Opera House at Montesano which was included on a list of theaters published in the September 5 issue of The Billboard that year. I haven’t found a theater at Montesano listed in any editions of Julius Cahn’s Theatrical Guide, though.